The exemplary embodiments are directed to indoor and outdoor furniture and in particular to a footrest with multiple surfaces adapted to support a user's feet.
Today, most devices sold or produced in the category of “footrest” may be more appropriately considered “leg rests”. For outdoor furniture, such as Adirondack furniture, the user's legs rather than feet may rest against the surface used for the purpose of keeping one's feet off the ground. With regard to indoor furniture, ottomans and reclining furniture also have a surface for the user to rest his or her legs thereupon. Resting legs on a flat surface may cause pressure on the calves or strain the knees. This may create problems with many individuals including the elderly or those with poor circulation or diabetes.
Many chairs sold today may be inconvenient for persons of short stature. Whether basic, adjusting, tilting, rocking and/or reclining, they may still be too high off the ground for a person of short stature to be able to effectively touch the ground to adjust position, rock and/or tilt the chair. Not only may the person not be able to touch the ground but the chair may put pressure on the back of the user's knees, causing discomfort. In order to alleviate this pressure, a user may sit forward in the chair; however, this may be just as uncomfortable due to a lack of back support. These chair designs may lack a surface from which a user may push off from. This may restrict movement.
Other chairs having built-in footrests may be wider than the user's straddling width. Because of this, the user may be unable to straddle the footrest to enter the chair. This may require the user to sit on the footrest, swing his or her legs over the footrest and then scoot into the seat of the chair. This problem may also affect persons of short stature.
Many standalone footrests are also known. Many standalone footrests may move, slide or tip when pressure is applied to its surfaces. Many times the user may want to readjust his or her position in the chair and pushes on the footrest to do so. If the footrest moves, slides or tips then the readjustment may fail. Other footrests may have one static position, which may discourage movement. Prolonged static sitting may cause back and/or body pain. Moving while sitting may help to alleviate these problems. Posture variety and/or position changes may also help.
Exemplary embodiments may attempt to overcome or solve many of these problems associated with known footrests. The exemplary embodiments are directed to a footrest which may have a platform, a side rail and a foot rail. A user may place his or her feet on multiple surfaces of the footrest. The footrest may have multiple levels and multiple planes. This encourages movement, posture variety, and/or position change while sitting.